Short しまう question

[tanuki]

Hello, people!

I know the "-te form + しまう" expression, and I know that when you must use it in the past, the しまう is conjugated:

行ってしまいます。-> 行ってしまいました。

But how is it when one must say something didn't happen (or doesn't happen)? Must the negative be in the -te form or in the しまう?

行かなくてしまいました。
or
行ってしまいませんでした。
?

I'm guessing it's the first one, but I want to be sure.
Thanks a lot in advance! Bye!

[skrhgh3b]

As far as I know, they never say, "〜なくてしまう."

[Nibble]

しまう is only used when referring to something that actually did or will happen, AFAIK.

[tanuki]

And how do you express an unexpected negative result? Something like:

I went to the gym everyday, but I didn't get thinner!

When I read that sentence, a しまった just pops in my head. But, well, maybe there's another way to express it? Maybe just a よ in the end?

[TrilinguisT]

i heard you cant use negatives with shimau. its suppose to mean something happened unintensionally.

このごろ宿題を忙しくしてるから、今日が母の誕生日であることを忘れちゃった。
Becuase i have been busily doing my homework lately, i (unitentionally) forgot today it was Mom's birthday today.

[paul_b]

tanuki wrote:
And how do you express an unexpected negative result? Something like:

I went to the gym everyday, but I didn't get thinner!

When I read that sentence, a しまった just pops in my head.

Well pop it right back out again.

But, well, maybe there's another way to express it? Maybe just a よ in the end?

If you really want to use しまった you need to re-word it to use a positive verb.
I suppose you might say ...

毎日運動したけど、ぜんぜんやせてなかった。結局無駄骨を折ってしまった。

[tanuki]

Well pop it right back out again.

Got it .

Thanks, everyone!

[AJBryant]

I went to the gym everyday, but I didn't get thinner!

When I read that sentence, a しまった just pops in my head.

Well, that's fine, but it would be TWO sentences.

Start with a one-word sentence: "しまった!" -- where you're using it as an expletive. Then go on with the rest.


Tony